Colorado State hits the road for the first time since a Nov. 19 at UTEP, visiting Albuquerque, N.M., for a Mountain West road game against preseason favorite New Mexico.

The tilt between the Rams and the Lobos is set for a 7 p.m. MT tipoff at The Pit.

The game will air across the Colorado State Radio Network, including flagship 105.5 FM ESPN, with Gary Miller and Brian Roth calling the action.

The contest will be televised nationally on ESPNU, with Steve Quis (play-by-play) and Miles Simon (color) on the call.

The matchup is the 115th in the series. Colorado State trails 43-71 in the all-time series, with a 12-46 mark in games played in Albuquerque.

About New Mexico

New Mexico enters Saturday's contest - the MW opener for the Lobos - receiving votes in the USA Today Coaches' Top-25 poll with a record of 9-3, including a 5-1 mark at home.

The Lobos have won two straight games since back-to-back losses at Kansas (80-63) and vs. New Mexico State (67-61), but have not played since an 80-68 victory over Grand Canyon on Dec. 23, a layoff of 12 days.

UNM is led by senior forward Cameron Bairstow, senior guard Kendall Williams - the 2013 MW Player of the Year - and junior center Alex Kirk.

Bairstow ranks second in the MW in scoring (20.1 ppg) and ninth in rebounding (7.2 rpg), while Kirk is 12th in scoring (15.2 ppg) and tied for fourth in rebounding (9.4 rpg). Williams is fifth in scoring (18.6 ppg), while leading the MW in assists per game (5.2 apg).

As a team, the Lobos rank third in the MW, scoring 77.7 points per game, just behind Colorado State (78.7 ppg). The Lobos are eighth in the league in scoring defense at 70.9 ppg).

Head Coach Craig Neal is in his first year at the helm of the UNM program, after spending the previous six seasons as associate head coach on Steve Alford's staff.

Series vs. New Mexico

Saturday's game between the Rams and the Lobos marks the 115th in the series between the programs, dating back to the first meeting - a 53-39 CSU road win - during the 1940-41 season.

Colorado State is 43-71 all-time against the Lobos, with a 12-46 record in the series in games played in Albuquerque.

CSU is 5-25 against the Lobos as members of the Mountain West conference since the formation of the league in 1999-2000.

The Lobos swept the series from the Rams in 2012-13, escaping with two victories by a combined 14 points to edge the Rams in the league championship race.

The Rams and Lobos split the regular-season series in both 2010-11 and 2011-12, after the Lobos captured eight straight in the series between 2007-11.

A win over New Mexico will...

Give Head Coach Larry Eustachy his 36th win at Colorado State and the 437th of his career.

Snap CSU's three-game road losing streak (overall), and mark two consecutive road wins for the Rams in regular-season games against Mountain West opponents.

Improve the Rams to 44-71 all-time against New Mexico, and push CSU's record against the Lobos in Albuquerque to 13-46.

Mark the Rams' first road win against UNM since an 88-79 victory on Jan. 6, 2007. The Lobos have won six straight home games in the series.

Move the Rams to 5-10 in MW road openers, and snap a three-game losing streak in such contests.

Looking ahead

Colorado State plays the second game of a two-game road stretch, traveling to San José, Calif., for a matchup against Mountain West newcomer San José State.

The tilt between the Rams and the Spartans is set for a 8 p.m. MT/7 p.m. PT tipoff at The Event Center.

The game will air across the Colorado State Radio Network, including flagship 105.5 FM ESPN, with Gary Miller and Brian Roth calling the action.

The contest will stream, free of charge, on the new Mountain West Network at CSURams.com/videos and TheMW.com.

The matchup is just the seventh in the series. Colorado State is 6-0 all-time against SJSU, including two wins in games played in San José.